Research and Innovations

Startups are easy if it does not require any new technology and for some the startups turn out to be very successful even though the ideas were very simple but provide something that people needed or wanted very much. For example, the iphone is very successful because it was based on the very good design of Mackintosh of the 1980s. I remember that I was  impressed by Steve Jobs brain child. The friendly design is a winning formula. I bought a Mackintosh with printer for $4000, a hefty sum for me in 1987 compared to $2500 for a  personal computer with printer. But I was happy with the system and my children enjoyed the friendliness very much. The design has something very important: the system interface is very simple. I believe the designers’ and programmers’ hard work is more than rewarded as millions and millions of  happy users continue to follow the release of Mac. Mac is a real success story to me due to its emphasis on design and quality at the beginning. Becasue of a very good design, I see in today’s ipod or iphone an old Mac that I bought more than 20 years ago. I still have the old computer that I have then. If any wanted an antique, I can part with it for a reasonable cost. LOL.

Now, back to startup. Mac was conceptualized by Steve and his group and continues to grow under him after he returned to Apple. In every startup, there must be a visionary who sets the direction in the presence of the choatic digital world. Why should one product be well received compared to another? Do you offer exceptional value compared to other products. It is not because apples are selling well, you also sell apples. That is not a startup but a copycat business. If the market is large enough, you survive , otherwise, you become a bankrupt. Therefore, it is not wise to do a startup unless you have something special just like Steve. Selling apples and oranges is a business but not a startup. Back to Steve, because of the excellent Mac orginal design, I consider ipod and iphone is just the porting of the orginal software to a handheld hardware called the ipod or iphone. It is a clever decision based on the original design.

Therefore, you do not need to change your orginal design until you make a better design. This idea applies to car, for example, BMW does not change their design often but it sells. If and if your design is still the best so far, don’t change. This is not the same as “if it is not broken don’t  fix it”.  Although this idea makes things very easy, it could be a formula for failure. Look at polaroid cameras, a successful business can fail when the market turned against you. Instant pictures are wonderful but who every picture is an picture in digital cameras. If polaroid cameras enter to digital camera domain early with its large amount of funds avaialble, it could be a different success story today. Therefore, a company success today is no guarantee for success in the future. A visionary where he is a CEO or an adviser to the CEO will be necessary for continue success in future. With continuous changes in the market due to next generations of consumers, ability to move with the times is a necessary character for success. I am open for consultancy is you are interested in my non-conventional ideas.

A great idea does not come just by hard work but by dreaming, having a good time listening to good music, relaxing under the coconut trees ( make sure a coconut don’t drop on you). But in all these activities, the mind searches for a solution.  You will know when you are nearing a wonderful idea after many failures. Do a startup if the estimated probability of success is 70 to 80 percent.

Now, I like to discuss about kaisuness – fear of losing!  I have tried to talk to a number of big companies concerning a startup. All of them sent their senior managers for the presentations or don’t response at all. At that time I am only asking for 5 to 10 millions, which is small compared to their profit then. First, I know that they sent non decision makers. Tell me which senior manager want to take a risk for a startup when you have a stable job. I can fully understand.  Therefore, I put my ideas in the KIV tray and continue my research.

My startup is “Guaranteed QoS in the Internet”. Today’s Internet provides only best-effort service. Best-effort service means best effort is provided to deliver a packet according to current resources avaialble.  The technology breakthrough is deal to many years of research. Well, it is fun to work on something you enjoy dreaming all the time. I am moving on to P2P networking and cross-layer enhancements. Many new things could be on the way. Promising students who are interested may write to me. Because the work is very challenging, only very bright students should consider my projects as I will like to spinoff the achievements as startups with my students.

If there are venture fund mangers who are interested in my project and you have about 10 million to invest, we can have a discussion. It is the fun and challenge in a startup and not just for the money that I pursue with my students.  Have a nice day and a great weekend.

This entry was posted on Friday, October 16th, 2009 at 7:27 pm and is filed under Venture funding. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.